The U.S. Is Losing the AI Credibility War—to Itself Recent restrictions on advanced AI models are undermining critical U.S. cybersecurity outcomes. The administration needs a coherent strategy to work with the private sector, stay ahead of adversaries, keep allies on board, and maintain trust in the U.S. AI stack. By experts and staff - Published - Matthew FerrenCFR ExpertInternational Affairs Fellow in National Security, sponsored by Janine and J. Tomilson Hill Matthew Ferren previously served in the Department of Defense where he developed strategies, policies, and plans for employing military cyberspace operations to advance U.S. national security interests and counter major cyber threats. On June 11, Anthropic apologized after it emerged that its newest AI model, Fable 5, had been silently limiting responses to users suspected of attempting to replicate its technology. The model had also been criticized for refusing to respond to any cyber-related queries, redirecting users to less capable models instead. Two days later, President Donald Trump’s administration barred foreign nationals from accessing Anthropic’s two newest frontier models, Fable 5 and Mythos 5, citing national security concerns. Unable to screen users by nationality, Anthropic announced it had disabled both models worldwide. The episode underscored how much both administration officials and frontier model developers now recognize the serious cybersecurity risks posed by advanced AI. For Anthropic’s founders, AI safety and security have long been central to their mission. For the White House, Mythos’s emergence earlier this year produced a remarkable about-face, forcing the administration to shift from an aggressive deregulatory agenda to one that is more risk-conscious. Although this shared focus on AI and cybersecurity is a positive development, over-indexing on risk and failing to align on a clear way forward could cause the United States to miss out on a generational opportunity to improve national cyber defenses. Using